Russia confirms drone attacks on military bases in Syria

Russian military forces prevented drone attacks carried out by militants on two Russian bases in Syria – Khmeimim and Tartus, stated the Russian Ministry of Defense, reports Interfax.

According to the Russian ministry, militants attempted to send ten unmanned vehicles to the airbase in Khmeimim and three more to the naval facility in Tartus. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, all of the drones were neutralized.

“Seven unmanned aerial vehicles were destroyed by the standard Pantsir-S anti-aircraft missile and air-defense gun complexes, which are on around-the-clock combat duty,” the ministry said.

According to the Defense Ministry, six more drones were intercepted with Russian radio-electronic warfare equipment. Three of the unmanned aerial vehicles were brought to the ground in a controlled area outside the base, and three others exploded after crashing to the ground,” said the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The Ministry said that there were no casualties or damages that resulted from the attempted attack, and both bases are operating normally.

As pointed out by the Russian Defense Ministry, militants used aircraft-type drones in the attempted attack, which were launched from a distance of more than 50 kilometers away and used GPS guidance technology. The department noted that the engineering technology could be obtained “from only one country that has advanced technological capabilities.”

On January 6, the drone attack on the Khmeimim Airbase in Syria was reported. At that time, the attack on the base in Tartus was not mentioned.